Theatre Ballet shared the magic and artistic beauty of classical ballet with audiences in Arizona last March. Each performance of Fairy Tales and Fantasy was preceded by a prince and princess party meet and greet.
“The connection that the dancers made with the children before, during, and after the performances made all the difference,” says artistic director Shani Robinson. “The children were so quiet in our performances because they were looking for their favorite dancer. Since they knew a dancer personally, they were that much more interested and focused on what was happening onstage.”
On the tour the group performed in small towns and major cities. “The dancers really felt the welcoming warmth that can come from a smaller town,” Robinson said. “Our performance became a town event rather than one of many options to choose from.”
The dancers received many thank you letters from elementary-aged children with pictures to express just how much the visit had meant to them. For dancer Nena Smith, performing for the children was the highlight of the tour. “Their eyes just glowed with excitement as we greeted them at the prince and princess party. Most of them could hardly stop staring at the beautiful costumes,” Smith said. “Being able to see all their ballerina dreams come true for a couple minutes just melted my heart.”
Source: Performing Arts Management